Closing Time
by everybreatheverymove
Summary: When Alex bets him that he can't be 'just friends' with a girl, Jackson sets out to prove him wrong by getting to know April Kepner. But he never imagined that a simple bet would change the rest of their lives.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, I know it took me forever to write this and, yes, it's not even that long, but I was really setting out the story and trying to figure how to start it because it's going to change alot and I had no idea where to begin. Hope the wait was worth it, and reviews are greatly appreciated. x**

* * *

He doesn't think much of it at first.

He walks into the bar, just as every other Friday night. His hands are aching dry. His back is killing him for being stood up for too long in surgery.

It's been a long and stressful day and all he wants to do is rest and drink his troubles away.

He doesn't think much of it at first.

The counter is virtually empty, aside from the one bartender hanging out behind it and the regulars warming up their usual stools.

The back corner beside the pool tables is deserted, the face-sucking couples that tend to occupy the secluded booths are nowhere to be found.

A lone man is playing darts, turning his neck every once in a while when the bell above the door chimes because somebody's either entered or left.

There's a pretty girl sitting by herself in the corner who keeps switching between tapping the keys on her phone and glancing awkwardly around the room because she knows that she's been stood up.

Then, he spots Alex. He sits alone on the other side of the bar, his head tilted down as he swirls the glass of Jack Daniels in his hand.

He looks like he could use the company, no matter how boring and tired it may be at the moment.

Jackson orders his drink at the bar before throwing down a few bucks and taking a seat across from his friend.

They sit in silence for awhile, both too worn-out and torn-down from a long day to start a conversation.

Jackson watches the few people around him.

The bartender checks his watch and sighs before he throws the towel over his shoulder and heads into the back.

The darts-player takes a sip of his drink, liquid courage to hit the bullseye.

The two old folks at the bar slowly finish their beverages and stand, heading towards the door as the one with the flat-cap scratches the bridge of his nose.

The pretty girl, who he now thinks he recognises from the hospital, bites her bottom lip and tugs on the edges of her sleeves anxiously as she watches the entrance, clearly still hoping that whoever she was waiting for would arrive.

"Long day?"

He glances over at Alex, raising an eyebrow unbelievably, "Long? That'd be the understatement of the year."

Alex nods, leaning back in his chair with a sigh, "Sloan's still giving you crap?"

"It's not my fault that the guy has problems with interns."

He'd never thought the first year of his residency would be this difficult, this tiring and this exhausting. He's working non-stop but he knows that in the end it'll all have been for something: the greater good. Becoming somebody who can make a difference in the world and saving lives.

"You think that's bad? Bailey's been on my ass all week because I messed up one of her charts."

"Dude, she's pregnant. She's like high on hormones or some shit." Jackson chuckles lightly, taking a swig of his beer.

Alex shrugs, "Crazy woman drama." He shakes his head before throwing it back and closing his eyes shut tight. "I swear, I'm never getting married or having babies or any of that crap."

"What's so wrong with a little baby?"

"A baby? They poop and cry all the time. They need changing like a hundred times a day, they freakin' shout whenever the mother's not around to get her nip-"

Jackson holds up his hands, "Yeah, dude, I get it."

Alex nods proudly, "Me and kids... Don't like 'em. Never gonna happen."

"You say that now but one day you might meet someone who wants kids, and you want that person, so then you find yourself wanting kids too. You gotta think about every possible thing before you make a decision, man."

"That's never gonna happen. She could have the best legs I've ever seen and a set of DDs but she ain't gonna change my mind."

"Okay, but think about it this way... What if she's perfect for you? What if she's the most beautiful person you have ever seen? What if she likes all the same things you like? What if she's the best friend you've ever had? What if you can't live without her? What if you wanna die first because you don't ever wanna live without her?"

Throughout his entire 'inquiry', he watches Alex's face, noticing the thoughtful looks that cross over the other man's face.

"What if she wants kids?"

Karev shakes his head, "Dude, I know it's Valentine's Day but did someone slip a Tampax up your ass? What's with all the annoying questions?"

Jackson laughs, "You seriously haven't thought about every possibility?"

"Of course I have, which is why I'm never gonna get seriously involved with anyone. At least not 'til I'm like 50 and going bald or whatever." Jackson nods, completely agreeing with his plan for life until around the time that he reaches his mid-life crisis.

"Besides, you can never be in a relationship with your best friend. That's fucked up."

"What's so wrong about it?"

Alex raises an eyebrow, "Dude, I've been there before, it's not easy. You think you're just friends with a chick and you hang out 'til you start feeling things. Then you find out that she doesn't feel the same way, so it becomes awkward and then your friendship iss ruined. I'm tellin' you, guys should just be friends with guys and women with women."

Jackson shakes his head with a confused frown, "There's like no logic to that. You're saying men and women can't be friends without anything more?"

"It's life, man. That's the way it is. Have you ever been _'just friends_' with a chick?"

"Yeah, and I wasn't in love with her."

He tilts his head to the side, "you sure about that? You didn't even have the tiniest romantic thought about her? You never pictured her naked?"

Jackson doesn't reply for a second, reflecting on his past relationships, one in particular. His best friend through high school. Annie. She was a petite brunette with wavy hair and she always wore the same leather jacket. He remembers how they'd become close after a study session set up by Ms Davis. She'd intitally thought of him to be this stuck-up egotistical jackass, but the more they hung out, the more she realized he was just egotistical when he wanted to be.

They'd never dated, but he won't lie and say that the thought never crossed his mind. He'd used and abused his fare share of cheerleaders and she'd always dated nerdy-looking book-ish guys, so he always figured that she wouldn't have taken him seriously had he asked her out. So, he didn't. It wasn't like he was in love with her or something, but he liked her, _a lot_.

But by the time senior year rolled around, they'd grown slightly apart and never adjusted their college plans to fit together. She'd moved away to California and hadn't bothered to pick up the phone. He didn't either, he knows, but she was the one who'd walked away in the first place.

So, he forgot about her. And it was easy to do, because she clearly wasn't worth pining over in the first place.

"Dude?" Alex snaps his fingers infront of his face and Jackson shakes his head, ridding himself of old useless memories and returning to the present. "You okay there, you kinda blanked for a while?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." He shrugs and takes the final sip of his beverage befor ordering another, "I was just thinking about your little theory."

Karev chuckles, "You're still stuck on that? Dude, if you wanna prove me wrong then go ahead." He throws his hands up and sends him a daring look, confident that he'll win.

Jackson raises an eyebrow and rubs a hand over his face, "You wanna make a bet?" He smirks and Alex returns the grimace.

"Bet you 200?"

"Oh, come on, you seem pretty confident that I'm gonna fail, so I think you can do better than that."

He teases and the other guy shakes his head with a grin.

"Fine. If you can find a girl and turn yourself into her best friend without falling in love with her then I'll give you a thousand bucks."

Jackson holds his hand out, "And if I fail, I'll give you a thousand dollars in return." He pauses for a second, "How long are we talking about here?"

Karev smirks, "You've gotta be her best friend, man. It could go on forever."

He smacks his hand against his and they shake it out, both determined looks on their faces.

"OK, choose your bait."

Alex glances around the room, eyeing the woman. There's an old woman who's taken the seat at the bar beside them. No.

He shakes his head and grins, swivelling around on his stool.

There's two attractive girls who'd entered a few minutes ago. They sit in a secluded booth and lean back in their seats. He watches them for a second, deciding if one of them is truly worthy of this bet. He needs to choose the right person because he wants to win this thing and the wrong girl could jeopardize everything.

The two women slowly slide over the table and join lips, grabbing each others faces passionately. No.

Then, there's _her_. The pretty girl sat alone in the corner who's obviously been stood up. She twiddles her thumbs for a moment before sliding her phone back into her jeans' pocket. Alex bites his lip and watches her, his mind clearly made up.

"Her."

Jackson turns raround and follows his gaze, catching sight of the pretty girl from earlier. He's sure he's seen before around the hospital, but he figures that she must have just been visiting somebody because he would have immediately recognized her if they worked together.

"Now?"

"Uh huh." Karev nods, pushing him on the back toward the girl who's getting ready to leave. "And hurry."

Jackson shrugs off his nerves, though he doesn't know why they're there in the first place. Maybe it's because this is going to be one of the most awkward and uncomfortable situations he's ever had to experience.

The girl slides out of the booth and stands up, tugging yet again on her sleeves and hunching her shoulders. Her redhair's pulled up in a loose ponytail and he finds himself staring at her ass.

_**No**. Don't do that._

He's suddenly stopped in front of her, rolling the sleeves of his shirt up and smiling down at her.

She stands before him awkwardly, a confused look on her face. "Can I help you?" She glance down at the floor quickly to rid herself of the blush that she can feel covering her cheeks. She's never been one for talking to attractive people because her self-confidence gets the better of her and she feels uncomfortable.

"Hi." He holds his hand out and she slowly takes it. Her hands are small, he notes. And soft. And- _**No**._

They stand there in a strange silence for a few seconds until he speaks up, "Do I know you from somewhere?"

She bites her bottom lip and stalls, "I- uh... We work- We work at the same hospital."

"No shit, you work at Seattle Grace?!"

She nods, "Yeah."

"As like a nurse, or-"

"I'm an intern."

"Seriously, surgical?"

She raises an eyebrow, slightly taken aback by his surprise, "Yeah, why is that so hard to believe?"

Jackson waves his shoulders, "I just- I mean you look-" He can almost hear Alex laughing behind him. He's royally fucking this up so he reminds himself of the thousand bucks that are at stake. "It's not... hard to believe. It's not. I'm sorry. Let's start over. I'm Jackson."

She nods, "I know who you are. We worked together with Dr. Shepherd and Dr. Hunt last week but you probably don't remember me. Nobody ever seems to." She glances down at her watch, making a sure reference to the idiot who stood her up.

And he is. Whoever left her hanging, whoever didn't show up, he's an idiot.

"That guy's a douche."

"What guy?"

Jackson smiles and sits down, gesturing for her to follow his lead. She sits down opposite him and rests her hands in her lap.

"The guy that promised you he'd show up on time."

The young woman bites her lip again (it's a habit of hers, he thinks, the lip thing), "How did you know that?"

He's going to sound like a complete jackass and a fucking douche himself but it's the only way that he can actually make a go of this best friend thing. "Because I've been that guy before. And- Do you want me to be completely honest?"

She doesn't reply for a second, instead just toys with her abandonned glass of Cola. "Go on." She doesn't even sound upset, she just sounds curious to hear his reasoning. Maybe it's not that bad, he thinks, maybe the guy didn't make her feel as completely worthless as she looked earlier in the night.

"I can tell you that he's not sorry and he's not going to apologize."

He likes her, as much as he could within these first few minutes, and he wants to be totally frank with her because this could be his way in, his way to win.

"He won't apologize because he'll blame it on you. If you complain, if you start an argument and ask where he was tonight, he won't tell you. He'll just blame you. He'll say you shouldn't make such a big deal out of it, he'll say it's not the end of the world. And if you start crying, it's not gonna make him feel worse because then he'll think that you're whiny and needy and that he did good in standing you up. Of course, all of this changes depending on how long you've been seeing the guy."

The redhead just stares at him, the corners of her lip tugging upwards and she nods slowly, taking in his information.

"It's our first date."

Jackson watches her, she doesn't even seem that pissed off anymore.

Some idiot left her alone, made her think that their first date would rock her world and then he just dropped her, and for what? Something stupid? Somebody better?

"That's harsh."

"Really? I hadn't noticed." She replies back sarcastically, keeping her attention focused on the table. "I guess I should have known. He said we'd have to leave early because he has something important after. Little did I know, he meant someone. You know what? Maybe it is my fault. Maybe I am too whiny and I scared him off already. I have a tendency to do that.

"Scare people away?"

She laughs, "Yeah. I become this annoying and clingy girl who scares people away because I get too emotionally attached. I mean, I'm doing it right now. You're someone I work with yet before tonight we'd never spoke and I'm sharing all my faults with you because you offered me a few nice words to console me after I got stood up."

"I don't usually do this."

"Really?"

Jackson nods, "I just-" He doesn't want to lie but he figures part of it may be true anyway because he wouldn't mind being her friend. "You looked like you could use a friend."

She looks up at him all of a sudden, her brown eyes boring into his green ones. "You wanna be friends?" She's slightly shocked to say the least, she usually makes friends with the dorky types, not the fucking-hell-holy-shit-have-you-seen-your-hot-face types. She's actually still surprised that he started talking to her in the first place. She's still surprised that he left his seemingly good conversation with his friend with come over and start one with her.

A few weeks ago, she'd decided to stay away from everybody else in the program because all of the interns were catty and competitive and she tried to stay in her corner and not get involved in all the drama that surrounded the hospital. Interns sleeping with attendings, like that Grey girl, cutting l-vad wires, cheating spouses, ... None of that interested her, she wanted to be there for the medicine, and the medicine only. And besides, the odds of anything happening in her personal life seemed pretty slim to her until the cute paramedic had asked her out. But, of course, he now ended up disappointing her as well.

"Yeah." He's not lying. He does, and she seems to be willing to give this thing a try.

"Fine." She agrees. He smiles up at her when she stands and zips her jacket up. When she's not watching, his eyes trail over her body. Why did Karev have to choose her? Goddamnit, this was going to be hard when she looked like that_. **No**._

He follows her lead and gets to his feet, "I'll see you tomorrow?"

She softly smiles, "Goodbye, Avery." She spins on her heel and slowly slips out of the Joe's bar. It's only then that he realizes that he never caught her name but she knew his last name without him even bringing it up. He should really pay more attention to his co-workers.

"You do it?" Alex pipes up beside him and Jackson turns his attention to his friend.

"D'you know her name?"

Karev frowns, "Why? Should I?"

Avery sighs, a small smile forming on his lips as he leans over to the bar and finishes his drink.

"Yeah."

* * *

"Avery!"

The older surgeon's voice catches his attention and he spins around to catch Dr. Sloan staring him down.

"Yeah?" He walks over to the other side of the nurse's desk.

Mark Sloan holds his hand out, "Do you have Mrs. Francis' chart? We need to update the procedure. We're doing a blepharoplasty instead."

Jackson holds a finger out, signaling for his mentor to wait a second, "Actually, you know what? I think I left it in the E.R."

Sloan shakes his head and groans, "This is why I hate interns, Avery. She won't be able to see your pretty little face if I can't operate." He teases and Jackson fakes a laugh.

"Oh, that's- That's funny."

He quickly hurries off and heads down to the emergency room to retrieve the chart before he gets his ass kicked by the Plastics attending that the interns all refer to as McSteamy. What the hell was all of that about anyway?

Of course, the E.R. is full of people so it's like a freaking obsticle course to find one book. He carefully dodges an old man who wobbles over his crutches and narrowly misses Dr. Hunt to comes rushing in with a gurney.

He finds the chart at the nurses' station and flips though it briefly to check everything else is in order before Sloan has his head.

He doesn't mean to do it, it just happens.

He overhears them taking across the room, the girl's slightly high pitched voice catching his attention.

"You don't even want to know where I was?" The guy asks her.

Ahh,_ the douche_.

The girl shakes her head, a careless look on her face, "No, Matt, I don't want to know. And don't even say that you're gonna call me next time because there's not going to be a next time. I don't care if you're sorry. You didn't even call. But you know what? That's fine. I honestly don't care. I just need to stop giving people chances if they're only going to hurt me in the long run. I can't manage on my own. I grew up close with my family, so I need caring people around me, not some douche who doesn't even call. So... leave me alone."

Jackson raises an eyebrow, slightly proud of her for standing up to the guy. He guesses by his uniform that he's a paramedic, which means that they'll have to see the guy around the hospital quite alot.

The guy walks away with a sigh and the girl pushes her shoulders back as he leaves. She stares up at the ceiling for a second and takes a deep breath before bringing her attention down to the people in the room.

And that's when she spots him. He's staring at her with a smile on his face, that fucking-hell-holy-shit-have-you-seen-your-hot-face .

Maybe this can work, she thinks. She needs a friend around this place because the one girl who she's close to, Reed, isn't much of a sharer.

So, she smiles back at him. Her red hair tumbles down her shoulders as she turns and slowly walks away, the smile still on her face as she holds a chart close to her chest and bites her lip. A habit of hers, he thinks.

Jackson grins at her response, and turns to the nurse seated at the station. "Do you know her name?"

He points down the hallway and the nurse follows his direction, "April."

He thanks her quickly and watches his_ friend_'s retreating back before turning to leave himself.

April.

_**No**_.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you guys all so much for your positive reviews on the first chapter, it really meant a lot. It took me a little longer than expected to write the second part. There's going to be quite a few time jumps in this story, so the chapters will probably skip on a few things, but they're not really important so it's not a big deal. Anyways (sorry for the rant), here's the second one. x**

* * *

**ONE WEEK LATER**

"Kepner!"

She spins around at the mention of her name, Dr. Bailey's angered face catching her attention. She quickly rushes over to the pregnant resident's side.

"Yes, Dr. Bailey?"

"You're one of Dr. Torres residents' right?"

April nods, clicking her pen off and slipping into the breast pocket of her scrubs. "Yes." Her eyes are wide and her throat is sore (from lack of sleep and caffeine, she thinks), so she licks her lips and blinks back a few itches. "What can I do for you?" She's here for the medicine, for learning, to become the best doctor that she could possibly be.

"One of my stupid interns ran off with the charts for an important patient in room 224. I need those charts, Kepner. If I don't have them in an hour, my patient can't have surgery and I will be very displeased. You don't want me to be displeased. Torres said you were reliable, was she wrong? Tell me she wasn't wrong, Kepner."

The redhead shakes her head, gulping her spit and plastering a smile over her face, "No, Dr. Bailey. She wasn't. I am so reliable, really. There is nobody better than-"

Bailey rolls her eyes, "No need to suck up, just find my chart."

She nods again, hurrying off down to the tunnels where the resident's group of interns hang out.

She's not even sure who they are, she hasn't been one for making friends since she arrived apart from that one time with that one guy who she hasn't spoken to since. Maybe he backed away, she thinks it's probably because she scared him off.

She slips down the hallway, opening the door to the underground hangout for the newbies.

Oh, great.

"April!"

Okay, maybe he didn't back off.

Jackson jumps over to her side, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as he walks forward and she trails next to him, a frown covering her face. "How'd you know my name?"

"I asked around." He says simply, smiling down at her.

She only then notices the other interns.

There's Yang. She's heard of her, loud-mouthed and competitive. The older woman lifts her head from her book and pushes her hair out of her face, "Who are you?" She asks rudely, pointing a finger at her.

"I'm, uh- I'm April Kepner. I'm an intern here."

Yang nods, "Who's your resident?"

"Dr. Torres."

"You're working with Callie? Oh, you got good." She nudges the woman seated beside her and nods her head towards the redhead, "Mer, we got screwed over. June over here got Torres."

Meredith Grey, the woman sat beside Yang perks up and April recognizes her as the intern who had that infamous fling with her attending.

She feels the need to correct the elder resident and rubs her lips together nervously, "My name's April, not-"

"Whatever, August."

Jackson stretches his arms and sits down on one of the abadonned cots. He pats the place beside him and she slowly joins him, her feet dangling in the air. They sit in silence for a while, trying to ignore the awkwardness of the situation. They haven't spoken two words to each other since that night a week ago when they met. And that alone wasn't exactly one of the greatest memories. He'd basically told her that she got stodd up because she wasn't good enough and yet, here she was, giving it her best shot to be social and give him a chance.

She figures that now is a good time to bring it up, because time's running out and she really doesn't want to have any problems with Dr. Bailey, "Do you have the-"

"Pretty boy!" Jackson turns his attention away from her and frowns at his friend.

"What?"

Alex pauses as he spots the petite redhead by the other guy's side and lets a grin plaster over his face, "Who's your... friend?"

Avery glares at him, biting his bottom lip to keep himself calm. He know full well that Karev's going to make this hell for him, going to make him lose this bet. And, he really doesn't want to be a grand, so he needs to win. It sounds horrible, as though he's using her. And he is, in some way, but the idea of being actual friends with her isn't actually all that terrible.

April lifts her head and recognizes Alex as the other guy from the bar who'd been hanging by Jackson's side before he'd left to come and talk to her. "I'm April. April Kepner."

"Karev." His nods his head calmly, "You an intern here?"

He's playing on it, acting as though he doesn't already know everything Avery told him about her.

No way, he thinks. No way can Avery keep this up long enough to win his money. Sure, she seems nice and a decent person. But she's way too perky and shy to be his friend. He doesn't think she'll last long, especially when he starts tormenting her. He's not the worst person you could ever meet, but when a thousand bucks are at stake, Alex is going to do everything he can to win this thing. He's going to make April fall for the guy and then ruin her.

He knows he may eventually regret the whole thing, but he wants his money and if a nice girl's confidence is the price, then he'll pay it.

"Hey, man. Do you think you could find somewhere else to stay tonight?" He asks him, swiping the grin from his mouth.

Jackson raises an eyebrow, "Why the hell would I?"

"My, uh- My brother's coming over from Iowa and I really don't want a full house while he's here. Our relationship is kind of strained and things might get bad."

He's going for the sympathy. He knows what he's doing.

"Dude, you hate your family."

"Dude, it's one night. It won't kill you."

Avery catches the evil look that crosses his face and sighs. He fucking positive that his brother's not coming for a visit. "Where am I gonna stay?"

"No way, Pretty Boy! I like my space."

Meredith finally pipes up and ties her hair in a ponytail as she speaks, "I have room but McDreamy's coming over later."

Alex pouts his lips and widens his eyes, as though he's stumped. He shrugs his shoulders and nods his head toward April. "Maybe you can stay with your friend here. Kepner, was it?"

She falters and glances between the two guys, gulping a breath, "I-uh..." She has room, she hasn't had chance to find a roommate yet so the second room is still empty. But the idea of having a guy over at her place slightly frightens her, even if it's only a friendly favour, "Sure." The word slips out without her knowledge and she stays still.

Karev smiles and raises his hands, "Great, perfect. There you go!"

April only just notices the folder is his hands and points at it, "Is that the chart for 224?"

"Yeah, why?" He frowns and glances at the object, "You're not stealing my case."

She hurriedly stands up and snatches it from his hands.

"Hey!"

"It's for Dr. Bailey." She turns to Jackson and smiles. She'd forgotten about the whole _sleepover_ situation for a few seconds. "I'll leave my adress in your locker."

He doesn't ave any time to respond before she rushes off, the folder swinging in her grasp as she pushes through the doors. Jackson turns to Alex again and smacks him hard on the arm, shaking his head. "You're fucking unbelievable."

"What?! You're clearly not gonna crush on her, so she's gonna have to fall for you. And the sooner that happens, the sooner I get my dollar."

"That wasn't exactly the deal.."

Alex raises an eyebrow and pats him on the shoulder, "No, see.. It works both ways. Either you fall for her, the friendship fails and I win. Or, she falls for you and you clearly don't feel the same, the friendship fails, and I win. Or, nothing ever happens and you win. But, let's face it, the odds of that happening are pretty fucking slim." He smirks one last time before his pager beeps and runs out of the tunnels.

* * *

"You know you didn't have to do this.."

She bites her lip and softly smiles, pulling a few pillows from the cupboard. She's already made herself at home within the two months she's been here, so her small apartment is all organized how she likes it. neat and tidy, she as just her mother had taught her.

"It's fine."

He watches her as she walks across the room, placing the cushions down on the bed and pushing her hair behind her ears. Jackson stares around the empty room; the walls are painted light blue and he guesses that she'd chosen the larger room.

"Are you... working tomorrow?" He doesn't even know what he was going to ask to begin with, but it definitely wasn't that. He mentally kicks himself.

April shakes her head, "No. I've been up for the last.." she stops to glance at the clock, "52 hours so I get the day off."

He nods and sits down on the bed, "Me too."

She stands awkwardly before she scratches her forehead and talks, "Are you hungry? I was going to order something but I wasn't sure-"

"I'm starving." He tells her and she nods,

"Is pizza okay?"

He grins, "I love pizza."

"I kind of hoped so because it's the only thing I have a menu for."

Jackson laughs, leaning himself back on his arms. He smiles up at her but quickly sits himself back up with a slight frown. **No.**

"Pizza is great."

April licks her lips, "Okay, I'll just- I'm gonna... go order."

She hurries out of the room and closes the door behind her, leaning herself against it.

She doesn't understand what's doesn't understand why she's acting like an idiot, like a shy twelve-year old around him. What, because he's hot? Because she feels way too self-conscious around him? Because she's nervous around hanging out with a guy?

She's never been one for guy friends, and the only boyfriend she's ever had ended in college when he tried to pressure her into having sex. That wasn't going to happen anytime soon because she wasn't that kind of person.

She wanted to wait, for many reasons. For the perfect time, for the perfect guy, for the love of her life, which he had clearly turned out not to be.

She sometimes thinks that maybe if she just did it, if she went there and didn't regret anything, that she'd be different. She wouldn't be so self-conscious. She wouldn't be so shy. She wouldn't be so awkward around guys.

But the idea of sleeping with someone who she wasn't going to marry scared her. Because she wasn't brought up that way, it goes against her religion. It scared her because she was afraid of what would happen.

Ever since she was little, she had this idea of her perfect man, of her ideal guy. He'd be tall and handsome, and he'd be really smart because that was a good quality. Her mother had always told that she needed somebody like her because that's what was right and that, contrary to popular belief, opposites didn't attract.

But she wonders if maybe her mother was wrong. Maybe everything she'd invisionned for herself as a young woman was completely off and she didn't really know what she wanted or needed.

* * *

"That was delicious."

She giggles and neatly tucks her napkin into a ball. "It was good. And thank you for paying. You know you didn't have to, right?"

Jackson smiles, "Oh, come on. You're hosting me tonight, it was the least I could do."

April bites her lip again and sighs a breath as she closes her eyes. He finds himself watching her face, mesmerized by the way she breathes in and out so deeply. **No.**

The way she licks her lips before she sighs. **No.** The way her chest heaves with every breath. **No.** The way she flickers her eyes open and stares right at him. **No.**

"Are you okay?" She asks him, and he barely catches her words because she speaks so quietly. He thinks maybe it's because she was watching him too.

His eyes brief over hers, as though he's searching them for something. But he gives up when he remembers that there's nothing to search for. He can't do this. He can't start thinking like this.

"Uh.. Yeah. I'm fine. I'm good, yeah." He stutters and quickly stands up. He holds his hand out to pull her up from the floor and she takes it slowly, her fingers clasping in his own. She leans down to pick up the plates and he follows her path to the kitchen with the glasses. The room is quite cramped and he stands behind her as she places the pots down beside the sink. He waves the glasses down in front of her and she jerks when she realizes where he's stood. She can feel his soft breathing on his neck as she carefully takes the glasses from him. He can't see her, so she takes a second to gulp and compose herself. Why does he have to be in such close proximity to her? It's really not helping.

Jackson moves from his spot and returns to the living room to pick up the pizza box. He enters the kitchen and places it down on the edge of the counter. "Last piece?"

April swiftly turns around, her left arm colliding with his chest. "Gimme." He holds it out for her, but lifts it higher when she reaches for the slice.

He laughs and continues to hold it above her.

"I'm tiny, I can't reach that." She tries, shrugging her shoulders and giving up. She goes to turn towards the sink to wash the dishes until he grabs her shoulder lightly and hands her the last.

"You don't have to make me feel bad." He tells her.

The redhead smirks and bites into her pizza, "Sucker." She laughs to herself, noticing the shocked look on his face.

"Oh, funny. Haha. Okay, you can never use the height thing again."

She raises an eyebrow, "So, we'll be eating more pizza?"

"Oh, lots more." He replies, deeply staring down at her.

Her brown eyes cast down to the floor before flickering back up to meet his green ones. She realizes what's happening and mentally kicks herself for getting into this situation. She shouldn't be having him over. She shouldn't be eating dinner with him. And she definitely shouldn't be flirting with him. What would her mother think?

But she sometimes likes to think that her mother was wrong.

"I should uh-"

She starts to turn backwards when he rests a hand on her neck. He's not going to- _Oh, no_.

"Hold on, you got a little bit of.." He swipes his thumb over her bottom lip and she stands still, staring up at him like a statue.

He swallows a breath and curses himself, gently letting his hand fall from her neck. **No.** He scratches the back of his head and blinks a few times.

April snaps herself out of her trance and bites her lip again, glancing awkwardly around the kitchen.

"Do you- Do you need- Can I help?" He gestures to the dirty plates resting on the side.

She only then realizes that the sink was running the whole time and reaches behind her to turn it off. "No, I'm- Uh.. In the- I'll just- I'll do them in the morning." She comes up with quickly, wiping her hands on her jeans and slips past him.

He watches her walk away, "Are you okay?"

He's not even sure if he's okay himself because he knows that he shouldn't have done that.

She smiles back at him and crosses her arms over her chest, "I'm fine, I'm just really tired." She stops for a moment, speaking again when he walks closer, "Goodnight."

She quickly goes into her room, closing the door gently behind her and leaving Jackson stood confused in the hallway.

He's not completely confused, he knows what he did. And now he's made things even more awkward between them, like that was even a possibility.

Jackson sighs and makes his way to his bedroom for the night, closing the door shut tight behind him. It's not entirely his fault, he thinks, it's partly hers because she just looked so freaking cute with that tomato sauce on her lips. Oh, god. Her lips. **No.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, so this one picks up where the last one left off. Well, the morning after their little 'sleepover' ;)**

**Sorry for the month wait! Enjoy!**

* * *

He's not sure what he's supposed to do when he wakes up.

Jackson stretches his arms out as wake takes over his body and he sits himself up, surrounded by thick and comfy covers. They're purple, of course. He stares down at the little white patterns on them for a moment before shaking his head and sliding out from the bed.

He takes a quick glance at the alarm clock. 6'am. He figures she won't be awake yet because they have the day off, but he's never been one for lie-ins himself.

He's an Avery, which meant that he'd been woken up by an alarm clock early in the morning every day of his life so kicks him into gear, get him up and ready for another long day of work.

Because that's what Avery's do. They work. Hard and rough, like it's all they live for.

Like it's what they're built for.

But he's not like that. If someone offers him some time off, he's going to take it, without a doubt. But he can't sleep in late. He's not built to. He's an Avery.

He figures she won't be awake yet because they have the day off, so he slowly opens the door to the hallway and creeps out, clad only by his dark blue tight boxer briefs. He doesn't hear any noise whatsoever, so he walks off into the kitchen. He picks up a glass from the night before off of the sink and pours himself some water from the tap.

He spins around and rests a hand behind him on the kitchen counter.

It's a small kitchen, and a small apartment, but there's only her living here so he figures that it fits, that's it alright for her. He wonders if she needs a roommate, if she's searching, or if she's already given up her search because all of the other interns seem to find her annoying.

He's overheard a few of the young residents talking about the red-head behind her back. Apparently, she was raised out on a farm in Ohio, and she had three sisters.

Also, she was a supposed kiss-ass to the residents and attendings, but he figures that the two trainees (not that he's not one himself, of course) were just jealous of her medical skills and her attention to detail.

He quickly washes the glass in the sink and places it back down on the drainer before walking back into the hallway. He spots a sink and mirror through a doorway and guesses he found the bathroom.

A pair of bare legs catch his attention and he spots April standing over the bathtub, running a shower, clad only by a little pair of black panties. Oh, **shit**.

Her back snaps up straight when she hears him enter and she turns around, holding her hands up to cover her chest, "Oh my- I forgot you were here!" Her face is bright red and she pulls her hands closer to her chest to keep her breasts covered.

His hand covers his eyes, noticing her discomfort, and he apologizes, "No, I'm sorry- I shouldn't have- Sorry."

April stands still, eyes wide and mouth closed tight. She's not sure what to do. Push him out? Yell?

She's never been in this situation before. Hell, she's definitely never been this naked in front of a guy before. "You can go now."

He nods and spins around, calling behind him as he steps back into the hallway, "Sorry!"

Jackson sighs, slipping into his bedroom for the night again. He leans back against the door and closes his eyes.

"**No**." He tells himself, like that little incident hasn't just made things ten times more complicated. He wanted easy with her. An easy friendship.

He's had enough complicated and fucked up relationships over the years with incredibly hot women, so all he wanted with her was an easy friendship. Fair enough, it was kind of set-up in the first place, but he's going to prove Karev wrong and get his money's worth. And if she's an added bonus along with that thousand bucks of his, then he'll take it.

But seeing her like that, all naked and sweet-natured isn't helping the little guy downstairs. He's not meant to be thinking of her like that. He's not even sure why he is.

He's usually gone for the over-the-top superficial kind of girl, so he doesn't understand the appeal she seems to have over him. She's the girl next door, the farm girl next door. But maybe, the _sexy_ farm girl. **No**.

She's the sweet and kind little doctor with a good heart, but he can't help but picture her naked. And wet. And naked. And wet.

**Shit**.

His mind suddenly starts to wander at the thought of her right now. He feels like a such a pervert, thinking about his clearly shy and virtuous _friend, _but the image of her in a shower, naked and wet, is killing him.

And he can't even do anything about it because of that fact alone. She's shy and virtuous, pure and untouched.

Maybe it's her legs, he thinks. It has to be. It's her skin, her pale skin contrasted with little black panties that made him feel like this. Or it's her hair. It was the way the red colour shined in the light of the bathroom as it fell across her shoulders. It has to be, because he can't think of any other reason to not walk right back into that bathroom and have her right then and there. Although, he'd probably get arrested for it and she'd probably never forgive him.

She's shy and virtuous, pure and untouched.

But, God, does he want to touch her.

**No**.

He can't, he reminds himself, slamming his head against the door with a sigh.

_"You want to join me?" She asks, biting her bottom lip with a devilish smile and holding out her hand as the water drops down her body. Of course, he joins her._

**No**.

She's the wholesome and clean farmer's daughter.

She's the forbidden fruit.

He realizes that that's the attraction.

He wants her because he can't have her.

She's the forbidden fruit.

**Crap**.

* * *

"Listen, I'm sorry about earlier.." He tries, taking a look over at her.

April stiffens and clears her throat. She scratches the back of her neck and smiles up at him slightly, "It's.. fine. I just- I forgot that you were staying her, so- It's fine. Let's just move past it." She attempts, holding out a hand.

He carefully takes her hand and shakes it, a small grin playing on his lips. "Yeah, I can do that." He gulps, taking a quick second to look her down as she turns her attention away.

She pulls her hand away, "Okay, so," She sits down on her couch and folds her legs underneath her, "Tell me about you."

Jackson frowns, "What do you want to know?" He's never been one to share personal information about himself with anyone so easily before, but he's sure that April isn't like everybody else, that he can tell her stuff.

"Where were you born?"

"Ah, you're starting off with the easy questions." He jokes and she softly smiles as he sits down beside her, "Okay, Boston. You?"

She shrugs, "Ohio, on a farm."

"That's.. nice." He teases, ignoring the fact that he already knew where she was from. He doesn't want to explain to her that two idiots were sharing details about her life as jokes.

April smacks his chest, "It was! I had a cow and everything!"

"You had your own cow?" He asks, stretching his legs out and folding his arms out, setting himself up for interesting info about her life as a farmer's daughter. Oh, **no**.

_"You wanna do it in the barn?" She asks him, pulling on one of her pony-tails as her other hand tugs on his shirt._

He blinks a few times, "What?"

"I said, have you ever been to farm?" She creases her forehead and reaches over to touch his knee, "Are you okay?"

He tries to ignore her hand on his leg and shakes his head, "Yeah, I'm fine. Uh- Yeah, I have, I think. Maybe when I was little, Avery's don't really do the outdoors."

"Oh, yeah. You're an Avery!" She grins, "I love your mom. She's like amazing, I mean, her article o-"

"I really don't wanna hear about my mom, or my family.. Sorry."

He quickly apologizes for sounding so abrupt and she smiles.

April bites her bottom lip again, "I'm sure you get that a lot. People worshipping your family and stuff. I will try to stop myself." She assures him, smacking her hand down lightly on his knee.

She's not even sure if she's doing it on purpose or not, her hand just seems to have a mind of its own. She's just trying to be friendly, she tells herself, to clear the air from earlier. But, he's acting kind of weird and she's not sure if she did something wrong.

She barely knows him, but she's never had a close friendship with a guy before, and maybe he's her chance. Besides, what are the odds that something else happens.

Either way, he seems slightly dazed for the rest of the day.

* * *

"Dude, you invited your girlfriend?"

He hits Karev over the head with bottle of beer lightly and shakes his head, "Shut up."

Alex smirks, taking a swig of his drink and resting his hands back down on the bar. "You owe me money yet?" He teases, nudging his friend's shoulder.

Jackson turns to him, "No, because nothing has happened. Nothing is happening. Nothing will ever happen." He sips his beer and sighs, "Contrary to what my mind has been telling me all day."

"What do you mean?"

He's not even sure that he should tell him because it ruin the competition between them, Alex could start feeling like a winner already, but he comes out with it somehow, "I keep thinking about it."

Alex grins, "About what?"

"What do you think?"

"With her?" He points behind him to where April is stood talking with Meredith and Cristina. "You're thinking about her? Dude, give me my money!" He shouts, holding a hand out with a smirk.

Jackson smacks his hand away and continues, "No, okay? Well, yes. But I haven't- I didn't- Why am I even talking to you about this?"

"Dude, you've got the hots for the Virgin Mary, it's time to confess." Alex jokes.

"I do not have the hots- Maybe a little- She's just so.."

Karev smirks and sticks out his beer, "Untouched?" They cheers and Jackson groans when April walks over to him.

She leans over the counter and catches Joe's attention, ordering herself a fresh beer. "What are you guys talking about?" She whips around, leaning her back against the bar.

Jackson shakes his head and smiles at her, "Guy stuff."

Alex smirks, "Kepner, are you gettin' any?"

Her face contorts and she frowns, "Are you making a -"

"Are you a virgin?"

She stands still, her face blank as she stares at him. "I- uh-" She briefly glances down at the beer Joe slid across the bar for her before turning her gaze back towards Alex. "Why- Why would you ask me that?"

"Ah! She is!

April's face flushes and she bites her lip again, glancing down at the Jackson for some sort of confirmation, "Did you tell him about what happened in the shower?" She thinks that's what it is, maybe. Maybe he realized how clean and pure she was and decided to tell his blabber-mouth best friend.

Maybe she was foolish to think he was a nice guy, a good guy.

Or maybe, it was just plain obvious that she was in fact a virgin.

"What?" He frowns, standing up to gently grab her arm to reassure her, "No."

She shrugs him off and throws down a few dollars at the bar before picking up her jacket from the stool and heading toward the exit.

Jackson watches after her for a second before glaring over at Karev, "Why the hell did you ask her that?" He ignores his friend's reply and copies April's actions, following her out of the bar.

"What happened in the shower? Dude, what happened in the shower?!"


	4. Chapter 4

**I think this is the fastest I've ever updated a fic. Thank you guys so much for the positive response! :) Somebody mentioned writing more from April's side so the next chapter should focus more on her feelings and thoughts. I just find Jackson is more interesting to write for in this fic because of his mind telling him 'no' and his off-limits attraction to her. Enjoy this one!**

* * *

She's not that far down the road when he leaves the bar.

"April, wait up!" He calls from behind, running up to gently grasp her arm.

The redhead huffs and pulls her hand away. She shrugs him off and continues her walk down the cobbled path.

It's dark out and she can tell that it's about to start raining because the wind's blowing and she's starting to shiver.

"Hey!" He shakes his head and jogs to catch up with her. He stops himself for a brief second before walking beside her. He looks down at her as they walk, noticing the blank look on her face. "What's the matter?"

April stops in her tracks, and he almost bumps into her. She just stares at him, "What's the matter?! Your idiot of a best friend just humiliated me. That's what's the matter." She tells him with a hurt expression.

He frowns, "Look, I'm sure he didn't mean to humiliate you."

"Of course you're going to stand up for him, he's your guy. I bet when you eventually give up on this argument and walk away in a few minutes, you're going to go right back in there and join in on his little joke. Actually, it's not even a joke, because jokes are funny."

She sighs, and her forehead creases when she spots the slight grin on his face.

"That's it, go ahead! Make fun of me, make fun of the fact that I'm not some cheap skank who sleeps around. Make fun of the fact that I actually have some self-respect and class. Go ahead."

He doesn't understand why she's getting so defensive. Well, he does, slightly. She must be able to understand his confusion. He was just surprised is all, only slightly. He should have guessed that she was so shy and nervous around him for a reason. He should have guessed that she might not be as comfortable around him as he is her. He should have guessed that their little encounter in the bathroom didn't help her timidness around him.

He was just surprised is all, only slightly. He kind of thought that she was virgin, or a did-it-once-never-again type of girl, but he figured that she was gorgeous, and funny, and smart, so he found it kind of hard to believe.

"I just- I'm sorry. For Alex, I'm sorry that he asked you that and made you embarrassed. But I don't think that you have anything to be embarrassed about." He says, smiling down at her, "And I am not about to walk back in there and laugh with him, because he's an ass, and I like you, and..."

He glances up at the sky for a quick second before returning his gaze down onto her, "I'm pretty sure that it's going to start pouring down in, like, five seconds, so I'm gonna walk you home before you get attacked by some random homeless person in an alley."

She softly laughs with a shake of the head and looks up at him, "D you want to carry me instead? My feet hurt." She teases, resting a hand on her hip.

He raises an eyebrow, "I can if you want. D'you want me to?" He smirks at her and holds his arms out. "Seriously, I will."

She giggles and continues her walk down the road, "I was kidding."

Jackson runs behind her and sweeps her legs out from under her, "I wasn't." She gasps as he picks her up and throws her over his shoulder.

He holds an arm around the backs of her thighs and she lets her arms fall down his back. "Are you being serious right now?"

"Oh, definitely. I could do this all day."

He doesn't notice the blush that flutters across her face as he carries her down the street but he feels the way she relaxes against him and doesn't try to fight him.

**Shit**.

They arrive back at her apartment within about ten minutes and he rests a hand on her back.

"Hey, have you got your key?" He asks her, avoiding the raindrops that keep falling on his face.

April leans back slightly and reaches into her pockets and pulls out her keys, "You can put me down, now."

"Nope." Jackson snatches the key from her hand inserts it into the lock.

He opens the door and makes his inside, slamming it shut behind him. He throws the keys down into the bowl and finally sets her down on the ground. She lightly stumbles and stretches her arms, "Ah, that was nice." She heads off into the bathroom, coming out with two clean towels.

"I should probably get going.." He starts, nodding his head toward the door.

She spins around to throw him a towel. "You can stay, you know. I mean, there's like a storm coming and I'm not just gonna let you walk home." She throws him a fresh towel and grins, "Or, I can carry you." She jokes.

Jackson fakes a laugh and accepts the cloth, "I would like to see you try. And, thank you." He wipes the back of his head roughly dry and watches her as she slips her jacket off and throws it onto the pile of coats in the hall. Her purple blouse is almost see-through and he can make out the shape and spotty pattern of her bra. **No**. It's pick with white dots. **No**.

She rushes a hand through her soaked hair and sighs a deep groan.

He can't help but want to hear that sound under different circumstances. She undoes the top button of her blouse and he quickly looks away to avoid eye contact with her and her... assets.

"Do you want a shower?" She asks him.

His head suddenly perks up and he stalls. _With you_. **No**. "Uh, nah, I should be fine, thanks."

She nods, "Okay, I'm gonna go get changed." She spins on her heel and walks off into her bedroom, closing the door behind her.

He stands still in the hallway for a minute, watching her walk away and disappear out of sight.

As soon as he hears the door close, he lets out a soft groan and throws the towel over his face. He doesn't know what's wrong with him. He's never been this infatuated with a girl before, much less some Ohio-born farm-grown Jesus-loving innocent and undefiled girl.

He shrugs off his jacket and throws it on the floor to join hers before he slips his hoodie off and tosses his shoes aside, leaving him in his white t-shirt and jeans. He figures she's going to be awhile so he makes his way into the kitchen, throwing the damp towel around his neck, and opens the fridge to try to find something for them to eat.

It's three in the morning and they have to be at work for five so food and a full stomach seems like a good idea. Unfortunately for him, the only thing he finds in her fridge is an unopened can of beans and some eggs.

He finds bread somewhere on the side and quickly works up some toast, the bread popping out of the toaster as she walks into the kitchen. He tries to ignore the fact that she's only wearing a tank top and a tiny pair of shorts.

"I made dinner. Or breakfast, I'm not really sure." He frowns, unsure of the meal.

She smiles and gladly accepts a plate as he holds it out to her. "I think I should go food shopping soon."

"If you find time." He reminds her of their usually busy schedule, "They think that just because we're interns, we have to deal with all the nasty crap that comes in the ER. "Plus, Sloan's been piling on the scut lately."

She nods her head as they walk into the living room, sitting down on the couch. "You think that's bad? Torres has me bringing her coffee every five minutes."

"Tell her to get it herself." He speaks, his mouth full of food.

April sighs, "What, so I can get kicked out of the program?" She shakes her head and takes a bite of her toast with beans.

They sit in a comfortable silence for a few minutes as they eat until April breaks the calm, "Did you hear about Dr. Shepherd?" He raises an eyebrow and she continues, "His wife showed up at the hospital like two ago."

"His wife?"

She nods, "Worst part, Meredith didn't even know he was married."

"What an ass." Jackson says, leaning over to rest his plate on the coffee table. She copies his actions when she finishes her last piece and runs a hand through her damp hair.

"I feel really bad. I mean, she falls in love with this supposedly amazing guy and then it turns out that somebody else married him first. That's got to hurt."

She tells quietly, leaning over to him. He stays still, wondering what she's doing when she nears him.

She quickly pulls the towel from around his neck and her face flushes, "I needed the-" She holds the towel up and he nods.

He scratches his chin and watches her as she wraps the towel around her hair and sits up straight, stretching her legs out on the other end of the couch so her back is to him. He smirks, "You ignoring me, now?"

She giggled and leans against him, resting her back on his lap. She pulls the towel away and drops it onto the ground. She softly blushes when he stares down at her with that addictive smile of his, "Happy?" She bites her lip again and notices the way he licks his lips.

Maybe this wasn't a good idea. Maybe she shouldn't have done that. Maybe she shouldn't be in such close contact to him because he looks like he's about to kiss her and she's not sure if she can handle that.

Or maybe she's just completely misreading the entire situation.

"Can I-" He clears his throat, unable to himself from staring down at her wet and pink lips, "April-" His voice is quiet and she barely hears him call her name.

Maybe this wasn't a good idea. Maybe she's screwed. Maybe this is very bad.

Or maybe it could be incredibly and extremely wonderful.

April slowly nods her head, her subconscious taking over as she understands what he's asking. He doesn't move at first, instead just continues to gaze down at her face, watching the way her dry lips move and her eyes flutter open and close. Without warning, she finds a warm hand on the low of her back, pulling her upwards to meet him.

She leans her forehead against his and anxiously rests a hand on his broad shoulder. She can feel his breath against her lips and she suddenly becomes very aware of what's happening.

They shouldn't be doing this. It's not right. They're friends. They shouldn't be this close. She shouldn't be able to feel the warmth of his body beneath her fingertips as they move across his strong chest. He shouldn't be looking at her like that, like he's going to devour and consume her within a matter of seconds.

His hand on her back slips underneath her top and he suddenly becomes very aware of what's happening.

Jackson reminds himself of what he's doing, and of who he's doing it with, and to. He can't touch her like this, she's his friend. He can't touch her like this, he'll lose his money. And he can't touch her like this because she's the forbidden fruit.

She's incorrupt and untainted, righteous and untouched. The words, and the reminder of her innocence, almost make him have her right there, as nasty and wrong as that sounds.

She bites her lip again, this time rougher than the others, and leans into him as he touches her bare skin. He grasps the sides of her face in his hands and finally pulls her lips down onto his, his mouth intensely caressing her own.

She presses herself closer and wickedly bites down on his bottom lip. He groans out gently and she takes the second to move her legs from the couch and rest them on either side of his body, straddling his waist. He takes note of her change of position and wrinkles the hem of her top in his hand as she lets her hands fall down his chest to rest on the top edge of his jeans, her fingers playing with the buckle but not undoing it.

She grasps the back of his neck in her hands and tugs him closer, letting out a soft moan when he sucks down on her bottom lip. He runs his left hand through her hair vigorously, his other hand caressing and stroking her thigh as she shifts against him, pulling away for air. She doesn't last two seconds before she's attacking his mouth again, and he's sliding his tongue between her teeth.

Maybe it is incredibly and extremely wonderful.

But they have no idea where they go from here.


	5. Chapter 5

**It's pretty late here so I'll try to write as much as I can before I get tired, because I know you guys are going through a Japril withdrawal ;) It may not be that long but hopefully it'll hold you over for the night. As I said, this one should focus more on April's side of things. Quick info, part of the story in this chapter is stolen from Grey's but for my purposes Bailey isn't giving birth. Enjoy!**

* * *

They stop what they're doing and come to their senses around half past four, after his hand's slipped under her top and she's pulled his shirt over his body. They don't say much, instead just brush it off and sort out their dishevelled clothes.

April moves away from him and immediately stares down at the floor, her forehead creasing as she's wonders what she was doing.

It was as though her mind had told her 'no' but her body hadn't listened and had decided to kiss him back.

Well, kiss was an understatement. She's not sure how far she could have gone, or would have, but she's pretty sure that if he touches her like that again, she won't be a virgin for much longer.

And that's a bad thing.

Because she still wants to be. She wants to wait until she's married. She doesn't want to lose herself to some guy that she barely even knows because she feels this insanely hot connection with him and because his touch makes her skin burn, in a completely thrilling and spine-chilling way.

Maybe she should have gone to church more, then she wouldn't be thinking of getting naked and letting him take advantage of her.

Maybe she should have listened to her mother more when she told her that boys only wanted one thing, and that she shouldn't give it to them.

Maybe she should have took note when her high school celibacy club told her to wait until marriage, because all she wanted right now was him, this guy that she was nowhere near close to marrying.

Besides, what if she ends up marrying some idiot? Or, some jerk? Or, some lazy guy that's gonna turn fat when he gets fired from his job? Or, the average looking guy who's going to turn uglier as he gets older? What if they have ugly children? What if they can't even have good sex?

She mentally kicks herself for sounding like such a superficial, snotty and arrogant bitch. She's never been a rude person, she's never told someone that they weren't attractive. She's never called anybody overweight. She's never been a rude person.

But is it really such a bad thing for her to want _him_?

He's funny and smart, and even a blind person could tell that he was attractive. She thinks that maybe it's his green-blue eyes that do it, that pull her in. Or, maybe it's his voice. His low voice that gets all husky when he whispers. Or, maybe it's just him in general. The look, with the voice, with the personality.

Because to her, he seems pretty perfect.

She snaps herself out of it when he touches her shoulder and holds out her jacket. His grins down at her and she's back to blushing again, that peachy pink tint rising to her cheeks.

April shakes her head with a grateful smile before glancing down at her legs, "I should, uh- Put some pants on."

Jackson looks down at her legs and notices her short shorts and he chuckles, "Yeah, that might.. be a good idea."

She quickly hurries to her room, taking her jacket with her on her travel.

Once she enters her room, she slams the door behind her and collapses against it on the floor. She covers her face with her hands and lets out a groan, a few tears trailing down her face. She holds back a sob and sighs a deep breath, trying to keep herself together.

She's such an idiot to be thinking like that, she tells herself. She shouldn't even be questioning her up-bringing. She shouldn't even be doubting her beliefs.

She's always told herself that she was strong, that she didn't need other people's acceptance to feel comfortable.

And yet, here she is, betraying her morals and thinking about hooking up with some guy that she's only just calling a friend because he, what, makes her feel alive? Makes her feel good?

It's stupid, she thinks, to even be asking herself that question. It doesn't matter if he wants her, or if she wants him. It doesn't matter if she wants him to touch every inch of her body because she wants to know what it'll feel like.

It doesn't matter because she's going to wait. She's going to wait until marriage, because that's what she's always told herself.

And he's not going to change that.

* * *

"Incoming trauma. Thirty-four year old male fell from the top of his house while cleaning the room. Landed on metal fencing."

Dr. Bailey gently lifts the patient's side and eyes the clear wound as they wheel him over onto a bed in the E.R.

She snaps her fingers at the two interns for them to hold up his side as she takes care of the deep cut. "Kepner, page Neuro." Dr. Bailey squints as she takes in the sight of a sharp piece of metal digging into the patient's spine.

April quickly pages Dr. Shepherd and grabs the chart.

Her pager buzzes back and she frowns at the code. She doesn't recognize the page, "Dr. Bailey, what's a Code Black?"

The older doctor lifts her head and her eyes widen as he own pager goes off, "You're sure that's what it said?" She asks, picking up her own beeper to check the code. She swallows a breath and eyes Kepner seriously. "I'm going to get Mr. Smith here cleaned up the best that I can and then I'm going to go get someone from Neuro. You stay here in the pit and watch for incoming traumas. If they aren't bleeding out and dying, you send them to Seattle Pres. You understand me?" She sounds much more serious so April can only nod her head nervously, an evident frown still clear on her face.

It's only when a man in a black vest walks by that she understands the gravity of the situation.

_Bomb squad._

"Is that-"

"Bleeding and dying."

She nods again, slipping her hands into the pockets of her coat anxiously. Bailey looks around the trays, "Okay, can you get me some pads?" April quickly pulls out the gauze pads and them over to her resident for the week, her fingers slightly shaking.

Dr. Webber walks by in a hurry and Bailey calls out to him, "Chief! Is there an OR available?"

"I'm sorry, Bailey. I'm busy."

"Chief!"

Richard Webber takes a deep breath and quickly speaks before leaving, "Nobody is getting on the OR floor, apart from the Bomb Squad. You're gonna have to work something else out, Bailey."

Bailey applies slight pressure to the wound and sighs, "We need an OR."

April doesn't catch her words, instead just focuses on the Bomb Squad members walking around the hospital holding up some sort of map. She fidgets and Bailey slaps her away on the arm, "You can't do this, Kepner. Find Karev!"

She suddenly springs back into action and pages Alex to the ER. She goes on the hunt for him, checking each and every on-call room to make sure that he's not hooking up with some skank before she reaches Peds and spots him checking up on an incubator. "Where's your pager?! I paged you!"

He frowns and shrugs her off, "I lost it, what's the big deal?" He's not exactly her biggest fan but if Jackson's going to be her friend, or at the very least try to be, he's got to play along. He's never been one to make friends with goody-two shoes farm girls, and she's no exception.

"Bailey needs you down in the pit. She needs to operate but we can't use the OR's." Alex glances up at her for only a second before he rushes off down the hall, "I'll look for your pager!" She calls out to him and he waves out behind him.

She shakes her head with a small sigh, "Idiot."

April only then reminds herself of where Jackson is.

**Shit**.

* * *

He quietly walks across the catwalk, his hands stuffed into his pockets.

He only just notices the incredible silence on the floor until someone grabs his shoulder from behind and pulls him away, "Sorry, kid. You're gonna have to go back into the main lobby. We're evacuating this floor."

Jackson slowly nods, frowning until he spots the man's uniform. "Uh, yeah. Okay." He backs away and heads down the stairs until he reaches the ground floor, stopping at the base of the stairs. He stands still for a moment, watching the nurses and residents rush around like there's some sort of apocalypse coming into town.

He thinks that maybe it's just a safety measure, that they're just doing some sort of drill or something. That is until Cristina approaches him silently and sits down on the stairs. She drops her head in her hands and softly yells.

Jackson stares at her for a second before finally wondering what was wrong with her, "What's up with you?"

Cristina looks up, her expression blank, "The bomb. It's- Meredith is in the room with the bomb." She almost sobs but he knows that she's not one for crying.

He goes to speak but someone taps him on the shoulder and he turns around to find April wrapping her arms around his waist.

"I barely know you." She starts, staring up at him, "But I knew you were in surgery and I thought- I don't know." She softly smiles and bites her lip as she pulls away from him. "I just- I knew you were in surgery and I didn't want anything to happen to you. And I don't even know you that well, like I said, but I wanted you- needed you- to be okay." She tells him honestly, her voice slightly trembling.

Jackson watches her face as she breathes out and folds her arms over her chest. He's not sure what to say to her, especially after their impromptu make-out session early that morning, so he just smiles and wraps an arm around her shoulders, pulling her to him and cradling her head against his chest. "Thank you. I mean, I'm not exactly sure what's happening but- You know, thank you for worrying about me."

She smiles against him and he tells himself that he sounds like such an ass, but he doesn't know what else to say. He kind of wants to lean down and kiss her again but he figures that it's not really the right time. Especially because they're surrounded by a bunch of people and Cristina, who he's sure would run and tell Alex, just to humour herself as usual.

"What do we do now?" She asks him, and he's undecided if she's asking about the whole bomb thing or about _their_ whole thing.

He shakes his head and licks his lips, "I honestly have no idea."

He figures that it's a good answer for both questions.


	6. Chapter 6

**I think it's obvious that the last chapter was rushed, so this one should be longer to make up for it. Well, I hope so. On another note, I've changed the rating of this story for well, obvious reasons. You'll find out eventually ;) Anyways, enjoy and keep reviewing! :)**

* * *

Everything is fine after that day.

The bomb explodes, the OR floor is a mess, Meredith is recovering. But a week later, the hospital is back and running as usual.

A couple of weeks after that, Chief Webber decides to throw some sort of party for his niece.

April shakes her head as she stares at the balloons hanging from the ceiling of the main lobby.

A rush of nostalgia and bad memories from her prom night springs to mind and she shivers at the thought.

William Asher, that was his name. Her prom date. He was her age, a few inches taller, and not that bad looking, but he was kind of dorky. He wore glasses but he wasn't a complete nerd. He was smart in maths, but needed tutoring in Science, so April had gladly offered her services, which is where he got up the courage to ask her out to the prom in the first place. She'd never thought of him as shy, bashful even, but when he'd asked her to be his date, he'd seemed nervous and anxious like he was going to wet himself.

She remembers how she'd spent hours finding the right dress, with the aid of her older sister of course. It was pink and puffy with thin straps. She'd taken forever to get ready, and he'd picked her up, and everything had gone great.

Until she found him doing some cheerleader in the girl's bathroom.

Perfect date.

Ever since, the idea and mention of prom has given her the creeps because all she thinks about is William Asher screwing some blonde bimbo in that cramped bathroom stall. Besides, who the hell does it in a public restroom?

She quickly turns around when she feels someone's breath on the back of her neck as they start to talk, "Are you going?"

She spots Jackson stood behind her and nods, "I guess I have to, I'm on call."

He frowns with a small smile, "You don't sound that happy. Aren't girls excited for the prom?" He asks her in a teasing voice as he nudges her shoulder.

April shakes her head and groans, "No. I hated my prom."

"I didn't. I had my first time at my prom." He tells her casually and she stiffens beside him, suddenly picturing him above some skank.

She fidgets nervously, "That's- That's nice."

He doesn't tell her that it was a threesome, he doesn't see the point. It'll only make her feel even more uncomfortable, even more awkward around him.

And ever since their make-out session a month ago, their conversations have been strained and tense. He's just not sure if the tension is nervous or sexual.

"So..." He trails off before he leans closer to her. She shivers when she feels his breath on the back of her neck and wonders what he's doing, "You smell nice." He tells her and she frowns with a soft smile.

"Um... thanks." She gently blushes and turns her head away from him so he doesn't notice the colour of her cheeks.

Jackson grins when he catches her face flush. He glances around quickly, making sure that Karev is nowhere in sight, before talking, "D'you want to go with me?"

She spins back around to him, "Where?"

He laughs and points at the balloons hanging above them. "To the... thing."

April bites her lip and avoids his eyes. She scratches the back of her neck and stutters, "I- With- You want to- Me?" She's not sure what to say to him. Does she accept? Is he invited her as a friend, or as a pity date?

He smiles down at her and steps closer if humanly possible, "Yeah." He watches her face crease and his eyes stare into hers, attempting to convince of something. His mother always told him that he could get away with murder with those eyes, that he could convince anybody of anything. "D'you want to?"

She stays still, slipping her hands into her pockets as she continues to chew down on her bottom lip.

"I, uh.. I don't think-" She starts to talk but stops herself when she notices the slightly disappointed look on his face. She's not sure if he's being sincere or if he's just faking upset to get her to agree, "Sure."

Jackson licks his lips and smiles as he continues to stare down at her. **No**.

He tries his best to ignore Karev's voice in his head, reminding him of their pending bet. He's not supposed to ask her out, but he convinces himself that it's just a friendly gesture. He's not supposed to be excited to see her wearing a dress, but he tells himself that it's only because he wants to see her in something other then scrubs.

But then Little Jackson gets the better of him and he doesn't want to see in anything at all, he wants her.

**No**.

"Great."

She remains in place before springing into action when her pager beeps, cutting the silence between them.

"Torres needs me. So, uh-" She starts to walk backwards, away from him when a smile erupts on her face, "I'll see your later."

He raises his eyebrows and blinks when he reminds himself that he's been staring at her for a few moments. "Yeah." He calls after her, shoving his hands into the pockets of his lab coat.

* * *

"Dude, we need to talk."

Jackson looks up as his friend walks through the door, throwing a bag of chips down on the gurney.

Alex opens his snack and starts to speak, his mouth full of potato chips as he tries to catch his attention, "Dude!"

Avery groans but doesn't reply, instead just glances at him.

The other guy smirks, "So, I heard something interesting."

"What did you hear exactly?"

"That you asked your little virgin friend to the prom tonight. What, she didn't lose it on her prom night, so she's gonna do it tonight?"

Jackson sighs and shakes his head, "You are unbelievable."

Karev's eyes widen and he gasps fake shock, "I'm unbelievable? Dude, you can't ask her out, that's like forfeiting."

"I'm not forfeiting anything, okay? We're just going as friends, that's all. I really don't need you breathing down my neck about it. I haven't lost, I'm not going to lose, I won't. She's my friend. So, if you think about it, you owe me."

Alex takes his turn to shake his head "Dude, look in the mirror." He throws a chip at him and grins, "You've already lost."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." He tries to brush him off, and looks back down at the chart on his lap.

"Okay, let me put it like this, " He holds his hand out and points out his index finger, "You're thinking about it." He begins, tapping his finger triumphantly as if he's already accomplished something.

Jackson stares back at him, confusion on his face, "What do you mean?"

"Dude, don't play dumb. You told me yourself, probably without even realized it. Look, you're thinking about her. And then, you're thinking about it. Admit it, right now because I'm saying it, you're picturing her." He smirks when he notices the distant look on Jackson's face. He needs to win this deal so he's going to make him cave, he's going to make him suffer so he'll come clean and give up already. "Sweet little virgin Kepner. You're thinking about it now, aren't you? She's beneath you, begging you, wanting you."

He tells himself that it's getting pretty gay and he's basically writing some sort of girl-porn but he goes on to make his friend quit and give in,

"No one's ever touched her, Avery. She's clean and ready. She's ready for you. You're probably telling yourself that you shouldn't because she's your friend, _of course_, but admit it, you really want to."

Jackson snaps out of his trance and stands up quickly, shaking off his thoughts. He glares down at Alex's laughing face and he hits him over the head with his heavy chart before he walks away.

Karev groans, "Hey! I was just doing you a favor. Give up already, Avery!"

* * *

"April, you look amazing!" Meredith gushes as she applies the final touches to her mascara.

The red head smiles gratefully, "Thank you, but you look beautiful!"

The slightly older woman grins, but gets cut off by Cristina before either of them can speak.

"No need to compliment me, I know I look the best." She vents, crossing her arms over chest. She eyes her friend before turning her attention to April, "Is the Virgin Mary wearing white?"

April glances down at her dress. It's a long white dress with thin straps and a lacy pattern on the back. She scrunches her face and sighs, "I guess I kind of set myself up for that one." She grabs her hairpin from her locker and loosely grips the front strands of her hair behind her head with the clip.

Cristina laughs, "Should we be expecting that dress to turn a different colour later?" She teases and Meredith nudges her when she understands her joke.

"Cristina!"

"Yeah, that's not so funny." April speaks and bites her lip.

Yang rolls her eyes, "Oh, lighten up, Kepner. You might actually have fun for once."

"I- I have fun... Sometimes."

"I'm sure Avery will show you a good time."

Meredith smacks her arms and ushers her out of the locker room before she turns back around to April, "Don't listen to her, she's all dark and twisty." She tries her best to smile.

April nods, "I'm just- We're going as friends, is all."

Meredith shrugs, "It's really none of my business but just be sure that you're both on the same page." She waves briefly before following Cristina out of the doorway and into the hall.

Left alone to ponder her thought, April turns back to the mirror. She stares at her reflection and takes a deep breath. She pats out her dress and checks the clock on the wall. Where the hell was he? Out of anybody, he should know that being stood up is one of the worst things to happen to her, that's how they met after all.

"Hey, sorry I'm late." Jackson rushes past the door and straightens his tie quickly before glancing up at her, "Wow, you look-" He starts, cut off by the small blush on her face. Instead, he just smiles and offers his arm which she gladly accepts.

"Is there gonna be alcohol?" She asks and he chuckles beside her as they leave.

"There better be."

* * *

"Okay, this party blows." She states as she sits herself down on the lobby stairs.

Jackson follows her lead and takes a seat beside her on the steps, "I thought there'd at least be something good to drink. Punch is not alcohol."

"We're on call, Jackson." She reminds him, nudging him with her shoulder.

He groans next to her.

She obviously doesn't understand that he needs alcohol to keep himself in check, to distract him from her. It's becoming incredibly difficult for him to be around her, and he's blaming it all on Karev's stupid mouth. The idiot had to go and put ideas in his head and now he's sat feeling like some weird pervert beside the girl he's having the thoughts about.

"Yeah.. you're probably right."

She puffs out her cheeks for a second before sighing, "Do you want to dance?"

"I'm really not a dancer."

She nods slowly, trying to ignore the obvious rejection.

She obviously doesn't understand that he can't be in such close proximity to her, and touching her, for fearing of taking it too far and crossing the line.

She's messing him up, inside and out. He's becoming all awkward and anxious around her on the outside, and it's mainly because he's thinking of her all dirty and nasty on the inside.

He's never been so screwed up over a girl he couldn't have before, and it's partially because he could have any girl he wanted. But now, now that he wants her, he can't have her. Because, despite an incredibly hot few minutes a month earlier, she's his friend and nothing more, and a virgin above all else.

April sighs and taps her knees gently as she nibbles down on her bottom lip. It doesn't go unnoticed to him and he carefully eyes her mouth, gulping a breath when she licks her lips. He shivers and shrugs it off, scratching behind his ear to keep himself cool.

She pulls up the edge of her long dress to scratch an itch on her leg and the way he admires her skin doesn't escape her.

She brushes it off and slouches her shoulders. "I'm feeling very nostalgic."

"How so?" He turns his head to her, watching the way she softly smiles.

"It reminds me of my prom. It's- When I was sat on the bench alone after my date had left me." She speaks fast, clearly embarrassed of being let down for the first time in her life.

He raises an eyebrow, "You're like a magnet for being stood up." He jokes but she fails to see the humour in the comment.

"He did- He didn't stand me up. We went to prom but he just- he... He went off with some other girl." It's a nervous habit of hers and she brushes a strand of hair behind her ear, turning her head away from him slightly.

Jackson stares at her, his mouth agape, "Are you serious?" She doesn't respond so he feels the need to insult the idiot, "What a douche!"

"I know. And, to top it all off, I caught them going at it in the bathroom." She shudders and continues, "And it was in my favourite cubicle."

He laughs, "You had a favourite bathroom cubicle?" He sounds shocked and she can't really blame him.

April nods with a bashful smile, "I did. It was in the middle. I remember the one on the left never had any paper, and the one on the right was beside the window, so it was very drafty." She informs him matter-of-factly, a smart look on her face.

Jackson shakes his head, "Unbelievable."

She laughs beside him before a chill runs over her body and she shivers from the cold. He notices her shudder and reaches for his jacket until he realizes that he'd left it in the cafeteria. Instead, he stands up and holds his hand out.

She eyes him, unsure, but taking his hand and allowing him to pull her up. "Where are we going?"

"Shh... come on." He leads her away down the hall until they reach a supply closet.

Oh, no.

"Listen, I didn't-" She starts but cuts herself short when he pushes the door open and hurriedly pulls her inside. The door closes behind her and she leans against it, watching as he searches around the cramped room. "What are you doing? Are you stealing supplies? Because somebody is and Bailey told me to-"

"Shut up." He turns to tell her quickly before continuing his rummage through the shelves. "Aha!" He holds up the object triumphantly and grins.

She stays still as he opens up a blanket and wraps it around her shoulders. She holds it closer to her and smiles, "Thank you."

"You were cold, so-" He stops himself and instead sighs, stuffing his hands into his pockets again. He groans quietly and shakes his head.

April frowns, "What's the matter?" She goes to touch his arm but falters when he backs away. "Jackson, what's wrong?" She goes to reach for him, this time resting her palm on his arm and he chooses to remain still, staring down at her hand on his bicep.

"Look, I don't want to creep you out, or scare you away, or ruin this- this thing that we have going, because it's good. It's good, right? We're friends," He tries to explain, choosing to ignore the fact that he was set up to be her friend in the first place, because it's not about that anymore, "We are, we're friends. And I feel like I can trust you, and I want you to trust me, I do. But when you do that, when you touch me like that, when you even come close to me, I don't know, I just- I don't want to creep you out, or scare you away, or ruin what we have. I don't want to ruin you. I don't. So, can you please stop touching me like that before I do something that I'm going to regret."

She's not entirely sure what he's talking about, but she thinks that she gets the gist.

"You could never scare me. You could never ruin me."

"April, don't say that, okay? Just, please, don't. You don't want to know what's going on in my head, okay? because it's bad, it's terrible. It'll make you scared because I'm thinking of things, things with you, that you could never have dreamed of. And you don't. You don't think like that because you're you. You're fine and nice and innocent and untouched and, Jesus Christ, I really want to touch you. I do, I really want to. But I'm not going to because you're you, and you're waiting for your Prince Charming and I am not that guy so I am not going to take advantage of you, even if that's what you want. And I don't even know if it is. But I do, I do want to. And when you touch me, it makes it very hard for me to not touch you back."

April stays paused, her hands gripping the blanket tight around her body. Her chest feels tight and she watches the way he sighs a deep breath and leans against the metal shelving.

He lets his head fall and she notices the way his hands clench against the railing.

The words leave her mouth before she has a chance to second guess herself.

"Then, do it." She gulps and her fingers nervously fidget before she turns around to lock the door. He lifts his head and watches as she dangerously shuts them in before turning back to him and taking a few steps forward. He stays in place and follows her path as she walks up to him.

She's not even sure what she's doing, or why she's doing it. She's aware that she might regret it later on but right now, she wants this, she wants him.

She bites her lip again, rougher this time, and attentively rests her hands on either side of his neck, her fingers slipping beneath the collar of his white shirt. She grazes the minuscule hairs on the back of his neck before finally speaking, "Jackson," She gulps a breath and lightly bounces on her feet, "Do it."

Before she knows it's even happening, her back's pressing against the cold metal shelves and she moans into him as he trails his hands up and down her sides, taking in the feel of her body beneath his hands. He's not kissing her though, instead just touching her.

Her eyes flutter and close when his hands travel up her body, skimming over the sides of her breasts. Eyes closed, she fails to see when he leans down and captures her lips, his mouth careless and loose against hers. Her tongue slips lazily between his teeth as she feels him lifts her thighs to wrap her legs around his.

She can feel him against her, but she's not sure how far she can go before she'll stop him, before she'll stop herself from giving him everything.

His lips are barely touching hers any more when he reaches down and hikes up her dress, the white material pooling around her thighs. She moans aloud when his hands touch and softly tickled the bare skin of her thighs, resting his thumb on the edge of her panties.

He doesn't do anything else with her underwear because he knows that she's nowhere near ready for that. He's not going to take full advantage of her, he's only going to go so far before he'll stop himself. He's just not sure how far he can go without taking all of her.

She sobs silently when he presses open-mouthed kisses down her throat, his mouth latching onto her collarbone. She wraps an arm around his neck, the other hand resting on his shoulder to steady herself.

He sets her down onto the ground some short time after, her hands immediately flying to his shirt to undo the buttons. He looses his belt from pure uncomfort and lets her slip the shirt from his shoulders. He grabs her legs around, her dress still around her waist, and he lays her down on the ground, hovering over her body.

April quickly straightens out her back and leans into his touch, letting out gentle sobs when he traces sloppy kisses down the cleavage of her dress. She rushes her hands over his chest, her fingers dancing over his toned stomach before she grasps the back of his neck in her hands and pulls him closer, enjoying the feel of his lips against her skin.

Her joy and pleasure is cut short by the sound of someone slamming on the door.


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry for the wait, I hope this lives up to what you wanted. Thank you guys so much for reviewing! I know a lot of people want drama and I can tell you that that's coming up, so keep a look out already because it kind of starts in this episode even though it may not seem like it. That was little subtle hint for you guys :) There's another little part of the Grey's story in here somewhere so you can get an idea of where things are and where the story is up to now. It's gonna be pretty difficult to make it at least nine seasons long. Anyways, enjoy! :)**

* * *

He doesn't touch her for the next few seconds, instead his hands stall on her waist and he stays in place, head lifted up towards the door.

April's eyes widen and she bites her lip, clamping a hand over his mouth when he goes to talk.

He groans and tries to hide back a smirk, "Did you lock the door?" He mouths and she shrugs her shoulders with a huff, forgetting whether she locked them in or not.

"What the hell-" Jackson recognizes the voice and sighs, moving to a sat-up position.

She follows his lead and frowns, "Who is it?"

He goes to talk when the seemingly annoyed person slams on the door a few more times before and tries to wiggle the handle. "Yang."

April stays still, pulling down on her dress and rushing a hand through her hair to tidy it up.

He creases his brow and stares over at her, "What are you doing?" He asks out of curiosity. She can't possible go out there-

The redhead stands up and stretches her arms out, "We've got to leave at some point." She has a point, he thinks, but then as soon as he goes to agree with her, he reminds himself that Cristina knows about his deal with Alex and she's sure to spill some very interesting details about what she saw in the supply closet.

April reaches for the handle to unlock the door until he grabs her arm lightly and pulls her back against him. Her back hits against his chest and he holds a finger up against her lips, "She's gonna leave. Just wait a second." He tells her quietly as an after-thought, resting his other hand on her hip to keep her in place.

She glances around the room as her eyes flicker open and close, taking in her surroundings. Bed-pans, tubes and linens. Interesting.

They hear footsteps walk away from the door and April steps forward, slowly turning the lock. Jackson pauses behind her, unsure if they should leave the room or not.

He doesn't have much time to think about it before April walks out into the hall and gasps when someone calls her out.

"Aha!" Cristina points out loudly, directing her finger at the younger doctor.

April's face flushes and she folds her arms over her chest, clearly uncomfortable.

Jackson figures that he can't just leave her out there alone to deal with yang so he creep his way out of the closet with a grin to hide his discomfort.

"Come on, Kepner, who were you- Pretty boy!" She exclaims and smirks, crossing her arms proudly. "I have to say, I didn't think you had it in you."

He rolls his eyes and grabs April's hand quickly, pulling her along after him. She jogs, or at least tries the best she can in her heels, to keep up with him, as he shouts behind him to Yang, "If you tell anybody, I'll make sure you never get considered for the Harper Avery Award." He threatens and her faces blanks, clearly not amused at his attempt to blackmail her.

She pouts briefly before shrugging it off with a nervous chuckle, "He wouldn't dare." She tells herself.

As they hurry away from the other intern, Jackson mentally applauds himself. He never uses his family name for anything, or at least he tries his best not to, but sometimes it's an advantage.

He hears a soft giggle beside him and stops his tracks, leaning against a wall. April stops next to him and stops her laughing to catch her breath, "I think she actually believed you!"

Jackson smiles down at her, "I was being serious." April continues to laugh and he turns toward her, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her hair carefully. She softly fidgets and bites her lip, casting her attention down at the floor.

He notices her slight discomfort and pulls his hand away. He blinks a few times and sighs, staring down at the ground as well, "I'm sorry." He shakes his head to brush it off and looks up when she grasps his arm.

"It's fine, really." She tells him, "It's just- I don't.. When you do little things like that, I get all weird and flustered and I'm sorry. It's embarrassing. You shouldn't have to apologize, I should."

He frowns, leaning his head back on the wall as he gazes down at her.

She just seems so nervous and apprehensive that he's not entirely sure how to act around her.

Every girl he's ever been friends with her, or ever been _with_ for that matter, has been confident and out-going. They've never been a shy and conscious girl from Ohio. They've never had to apologize for getting all perplexed and heated around him.

He knows he's good looking, he can't lie about that. He knows that he gets lots of attention from women because of his looks, he can't lie about that either. But he doesn't want her to feel anxious and agitated because of him. He figures that she's a naturally fussy person, that she gets easily worked up and bothered, and that she might be slightly unhinged sometimes.

But he's willing to handle it. He can handle it because she's his _friend_, and he likes her, and he enjoys being with her. And he doesn't want that to stop just because she feels awkward around him. So, he going to calm her down, in any which way he can without spooking her, without taking things too far.

His pager stops his train of thought and he quickly picks up the black beeper, cursing under his breath. He sighs and starts walking away from her, "My patient's coding, but I'll find you after!" He calls after himself and waves her off.

April watches him leave, a small smile on her face. She needs to stop being so weird and unsettled around him, she thinks with a mental kick. He's her friend, she likes him, and she enjoys being with him. But when he touches her a certain way, or does something remotely adorable, she starts to lose her mind and has to restrain herself from jumping him.

She's not experienced, she tells herself, that has to be it. She has no experience when it comes to guys. She's knew to everything. And then, he comes in, makes her feel all hot and bothered, and then apologizes when _she's_ the one who gets irritated. But irritated in the best way possible. In a way that she never wants to stop feeling, that she never wants to let go of. And she never wants to let go of him because he's the source of that joy and satisfaction.

Satisfaction that eventually makes her feel uneasy when she reminds herself that she can't take things too far because she's not that kind of girl.

It's fun, she notes, they're having fun. Besides, a little pleasure and entertainment never killed anybody.

But she's unsure where the fun ends, and the serious and honest things begin.

* * *

"So," Alex starts as he slides his tray across the cafeteria table. He picks up his fork and sticks it into his meal roughly. "There's a pair of women's panties on the bulletin board." He smirks and stuffs the fork-full of food into his mouth, chewing down on the potatoes as he speaks, "Have you got something' to tell me, Avery?"

Jackson lifts his head and stares at him blankly, "I'm more of a boxers guy myself. But thanks for checking."

Alex rolls his eyes, "Dude, I'm being serious! Are they your girlfriend's?"

"Okay. A, I have no idea what you're talking about. B, they're not April's underwear. And C, she's not my girlfriend." He tells him simply before shaking his head and getting back to his lunch.

"Why are you getting do defensive? It was just a question." He squints his eyes and watches his friend attentively, "You're hiding something, aren't you?"

Jackson stands up and picks up his tray to leave.

"Hey, how do you know what her underwear looks like?"

**Shit.**

* * *

"Mr. Sampson, I'm here to check on your stitches." April says as she pulls open the curtain.

The slightly older man laying in the bed groans and turns over onto his back. His frown turns to an eerie grin when he takes in the appearance of his doctor.

He watches the way her red hair spins as she turns around to reach for the gauze pads.

She catches him staring at her behind from the corner of her eye and swallows a breath, mentally cursing herself for picking up this chart. Of course, she had to get dealt with the creepy middle-aged guy who couldn't keep his eyes off her ass.

She reminds herself that she's a doctor and that, over her residency, she's going to have to deal with numerous weird and disturbing patients. So, really, this guy is just the first of many.

April quickly turns around to stop his view of her behind and she fakes a smile. She can't help but feel slightly terrified under the man's gaze, lightly petrified from his unpleasant look.

Luckily, she didn't close the curtain so the other doctors and patients are still in clear view.

She's never been one to deal well with older guys. She remembers when she used to walk to school and back with her sisters, and the nasty wolf-whistles that came from builders across the street. People were atrocious and gross sometimes.

"You're doing a fine job there, Sweet-Ass." He tells her and she nervously laughs, trying her best not to cringe at his nickname.

"Thank you."

She notices the way he's staring at her breasts and suddenly feels very self-conscious, tugging her scrub top higher when she turns around to grab some more cloths from the side stray.

April thanks her stars when she recognizes the voice behind her. She turns around and smiles when she spots Jackson guardedly eyeing her patient.

She smiles up at him and he stares back down at her with a worried look, "Are you okay?" He tries to sound discreet to not unnerve the man in the bed, but he couldn't help but notice the way the man's eyes followed his friend around the room.

April nods with a fake and nervous smile and he catches on, sending her a reassuring look.

"Okay. Uh, I was gonna head to Joe's, are you almost done here, or-?"

She eagerly cuts him off, and places the utensils back down onto the tray, "I'm almost done here." She smiles and mutters under her breath, "Thank God."

Jackson grins and crosses his arms, "I'll meet you in the locker room?"

She nods with a smile before he walks away, and she finishes up with Mr. Sampson.

"Is that your boyfriend, Sweet-Ass?" He questions and she feels the need to lie, just to keep this guy off her back.

"Yep. He's my boyfriend. He's all mine. I'm all his. No one else's." She speaks quickly, tying up the stitches on the man's battered arm.

He groans deeply and frowns beside her, "That's a shame, Sweet-Ass. I could have treated you better than he can."

She awkwardly stands there, cleaning up his arm with a distant smile, "I am sure that's true." She tells him nicely, avoiding the haunting expression on his face. "So, I'm all done here, and Dr. Torres will come and check on you later on, okay?"

Mr. Sampson licks his lips and smirks, "Is she as nice as you are?" He teases.

April anxiously laughs and heads back toward the curtain. "She's even nicer."

She heads back into the main emergency room, closing the curtain on her way.

She takes a deep breath to collect herself and shudders.

* * *

"He was seriously scaring me to death!" She tells him, holding her hands up, her eyes wide.

Jackson shakes his head with a chuckle before taking another sip of his drink.

April continues to ramble on about random things and he tries his best to listen to her, but instead gets his attention stuck on the necklace around her neck.

He's never noticed it before and he frowns, "You wear a cross?"

She follows his gaze and looks down at her chest, spotting the tiny cross hanging around her neck. She ignores the fact that he clearly wasn't listening to what she was saying and explains, "Uh, yeah. It was a gift from my parents for my 18th birthday." She tells him shyly and grabs the small object between her fingers, "I guess it's pretty stupid that I still wear it." She breathes with a slightly laugh.

He creases his forehead and shakes his head at her, "No, it's- It's important to you. And it's nice. You know, that you still wear it." He catches the disbelieving look on her face and smiles, "Seriously."

April slowly nods and lets go of the cross, "I guess I just find it weird because of what I do. I mean, I'm a doctor. I should believe in the science of everything. And, I do. I believe in all of that, evolution and everything, but I was raised to believe in God and to pray for miracles."

"Miracles happen in science." He tries and runs the tip of his finger over the rim of his glass.

She watches his hand and nods, agreeing with him. She lifts up her beer and takes a huge sip before slamming the bottle down on the table,

"I want to get drunk!" She declares and stands up to go and order another set of drinks.

He grabs her arm lightly in his own and pulls her back down, "No, no, no. We have work tomorrow." She pouts and Jackson laughs beside her, watching as she pulls her arm away and heads over to the bar anyway.

She comes back a few minutes later with a tray full of shots and two beers. She holds out a shot glass to him and grins, "Drink."

He obliges with a groan, downing the quick drink. She giggles at his face and holds out another one for him. "I thought you were getting drunk, not me."

April sits down on the table and swallows her shot, "That's no fun. You need to be drunk too." She informs him and pushes another shot glass up to his lips.

He grabs the small glass and sets it back down on the table, "Stop." He tells her with a slightly smile but she picks up her beer and downs the liquid rapidly.

She bends forward all of a sudden, seemingly about to puke. She refrains and lifts her head. He stands up and tugs her up alongside him. He gently pulls her over to the bathrooms, trying to get her over a toilet before she spills her guts up. So, she's a lightweight, he figures.

He doesn't make it all the way to the bathrooms before she's pushing him back against the brick wall, her lips crashing down on his and her hands attacking his body. He reminds himself that she's quite drunk, that she's not fully conscious of what she's doing. But then she goes and gropes his junk and he forgets what he was thinking about in the first place.

Her hands travel up his chest, resting on his shoulders as he grasps the back of her neck gently in his hand, pulling her closer to him. She moans into his mouth when he spins her around, pressing her back against the lined wall. He pulls her hands back when she goes to remove his shirt, reminding himself that they're in a public place. When she lets go off the bottom of his shirt and grips his shoulders instead, he places his hands on either side of her head, caging her in against the wall.

She allows his tongue to enter her mouth and she bites down on his bottom lip, making him grunt against her mouth. She gingerly giggles and cups his face between her hands, relishing the feel of his tongue licking her lips.

And then there it is.

Within a second, she's crouched down in the corner, hurling her guts up. "Oh, God." She gasps and shivers, standing up and wiping her mouth with the back of her hand neatly. She folds her arms over her chest and bashfully smiles up at him.

Jackson chuckles and wraps an arm around her shoulders, "Let's get you home." He tells her as they make they're way out of the bar, stopping only to tell Joe about the clean-up near the bathrooms.


	8. Chapter 8

**I know I haven't updated this story in a while, and I'm going away for two weeks so I might not have time to write more until I get back. But, I promise, when I get home, there will be more to come! Hope you enjoy this one!**

* * *

"I'm sorry."

It's the first words he hears come out of her mouth since they've gotten back to her place.

She crosses her arms and bites her lip bashfully when he stops still in front of her with a small smirk.

"You- You don't have to be sorry." He speaks, trying to reassure her..

April slowly nods before pausing and shrugging her shoulders, "I am, though. Sorry, I- I am. That was... embarrassing."

Jackson laughs and sits down beside her on the bed. He leans back on his forearms and glances around her room. The curtains are white, the walls beige and the bedding pink. Girly, he thinks, definitely April.

"It wasn't embarrassing."

"It was."

He nods, "Okay, yeah, it was." He catches the smile on her face and grins, "D'you do that often?"

April nudges his shoulder and shakes her head, "No, strangely enough. It's just nice every once in a while, you know? Let loose, be care free. I was brought up to be a hard-worker, and to always play by the rules. My mom hates alcohol and always told us to never drink, never get drunk, because _you never know what could happen if you're wasted_." She mimics her mother's voice and giggles, still slightly intoxicated.

Jacksons sighs and licks his lips, "Your mom sounds... cool." He teases and she nods.

"Oh, yeah, definitely. She's a real party animal." He laughs and continues, "Seriously, if you ever meet her, don't mention me being drunk. She'd freak out and throw me in a convent."

She doesn't notice his eyes on her lips, or his hand that's made its way onto her knee.

It's not intentional, he tells himself. He doesn't mean to touch her without thinking about the consequences, he doesn't mean to stare at her like some creep, because he's not. Despite his brain telling him to back away and move along to someone else, someone more available, he can't stop himself.

There's something about her that keeps puling him in, and he keeps convincing himself that it's a bad thing. A very, very bad thing.

But it's only bad because she's all wholesome and innocent, safe and undamaged.

She's safe and innocent, but the attraction and connection he feels towards her isn't anything but immoral and unhealthy.

There's some sort of terrible and chemical reaction that happens to him whenever he's around her, and he wants nothing but for it to stop. because he can't do this, he can't think of her like this.

She's his friend, a new friend who he cares for and respects.

She's sweet and clean, a convulsive concoction when mixed with his own traits.

A then he reminds himself that she's a bet. She's a bet. She's the dice in some twisted game that he started with an indecent friend.

He's just hoping the dice rolls off of the board so she doesn't get hurt.

But then she starts biting her lip and toying with her hair and leaning closer towards him, and he loses it.

And then, before he even notices, she's doing all of those things. Probably sub-consciously, he thinks, but it doesn't make any difference. He's still thinking of laying her down on her bed and defiling every good thing about her.

She honestly didn't even drink that much but judging by the way that she's trying to grasp his face and pull him closer, he's guessing that she's still a little big drunk.

"April-"

Within a second, her hands are cupping the sides of his face with her mouth pressed against his and she's pulling herself into his lap, pushing him down on her mattress.

He doesn't think when his hands find her ass and slip beneath her top. He doesn't think when he lets her pull her top over her head and rest her hands on his crotch.

He definitely doesn't think when he grabs her face roughly and kisses her full force as her hands work to unzip his pants.

It's only when she lightly parts her legs and presses herself against him that he realizes what they're doing, and how wrong it is. But he won't stop her, he needs her to be the one to ends it.

Otherwise, she'll get the impression that he's rejecting her, that he doesn't want her. Because he does, he wants her so much that it's quite literally hurting him.

After a few moments and a few groans from his part, she pulls away from him and sighs. She closes her and swallows a breath, resting her hands on his chest to steady herself.

April stands up and runs a hand through her hair anxiously, "Sorry."

He's utterly confused and leans up, resting on his arms and watching her as she paces.

"I can't do this. I can't keep doing this. It's- It's not right, or healthy, or... or freaking sanitary!" She scratches the back of her neck and throws her head back with a groan, "What is wrong with me? I'm insane! What is wrong with me?!"

"There's nothing wrong with you."

"It was a rhetorical question!" She tells him, crossing her arms over her chest and staring over at him.

Jackson licks his lips again and takes his turn to sigh.

"I'm insane. I'm going crazy. Oh God, what's my mother going to say? I'm a whore! I'm an adulterous whore!"

He frowns and sits up straight, "I'm pretty sure this isn't adultery."

"I am, and this is. This is adultery, because we're not married."

He raises his eyebrows and stares at her. Maybe she is slightly crazy. "Exactly. For it to be adultery, one of us has to be married to someone else. Also, we haven't had sex."

She takes a deep breath and slowly nods, "You're right, I'm sorry."

"Just... calm down, okay? We haven't done anything illegal, or... you know, against your beliefs. Calm down."

April stands in silence, tucking her hair behind her ears, "I think I should- I need to stay away from you for a while." She speaks so fast that he barely hears her but he catches the words 'away' and 'you'.

"What are you talking about?"

He's not sure how they keep ending up here.

They haven't known each other for long, but they seem to already have some sort of pattern going on. They talk a nice conversation, until one of them jumps the other. They make-out for five minutes until one of them sees reason and stops things from going any further. And then everything gets awkward and weird.

"I just- I can't be near you, or I might... Look, we haven't done anything wrong. I'm aware of that, okay? I'm not that crazy. I'm not delusional. I'm just a little bit jumpy and anxious sometimes, but I'm not crazy." She stands in front of him but keeps herself at a distance, trying her best not to touch him. "We haven't done anything wrong, I know that." She repeats.

April takes a shirt breath before rambling on, "But we might. We probably would. We probably will. But that can't happen. And, I'm not some needy and desperate girl who needs your attention and affection, but I want you. I'm gonna be bold and say that. I don't even know what you want, do you want this? Do you want to do it? Because I'm pretty sure that you do and that's a problem for. Actually, it's all a problem because I want you, and I can't want you."

He feels the need to say something, to cut her off,"April-", but she beats him to it.

"I can't want you. So, I have to stay away from you. At least, like that, in that way. I can be your friend, we can be friends. But that's it. Because this, this thing that's going on, I've never felt that before and honestly I'm not sure it's a good thing. I want you, and I want to touch you, and I want everything about you, and I want you to want me too. But I can't. And I'm not making much sense, so I have no idea if you're understanding any of this, but it's- I can't do this."

He's only half-aware and sure of what she's said, but he thinks that he gets the gist of it all.

"Do you want me to leave?"

She nods in response, turning away from him and folding her arms, before he has time to say anything else.

Jackson doesn't reply, instead just stands up and grabs his jacket from off of the chair in her room. "I'll see you around." He says simply as he goes past her doorway.

Once she hears the front door close shut, she sits herself on her bed and bites her lip, unsure of what she's just done.

* * *

He clicks his pen as he walks down the corridor towards the ER, muttering under his breath.

She frustrates him so much, he tells himself, yet he finds himself forgiving her because he understands her reasoning.

She doesn't want to get into anything because she's promised herself to Jesus and the church and her future husband, and she can't handle anything else.

He gets that, he does, he understands it. But it doesn't make it any easier.

"Dr. Avery," A woman calls behind him and he turns to see a nurse catching up with him. "You're on Dr. Shepherd's service today and he's waiting for you." She hands him a chart and rushes off.

Jackson groans and flicks through the chart. He feels slightly better that he's on Neuro this week. He's still not quite decided on his specialty yet, and he knows that he has a few more years before he has to make a decision, but Neuro is looking good at the moment.

It requires precise handwork, being able to stand on your feet for long periods of time and deep concentration, all qualities that he possesses.

He makes his way up to the patient's room and slips past the door with a smile. Dr. Shepherd greets him before turning back to the patient in question.

"It is a minor surgery, not too invasive. Luckily the tumour hasn't progressed too far so we should be able to catch it on that first go. If you have any further questions, feel free to ask Dr. Avery."

Jackson smiles at the patient. She's a thirty-something brunette with a wide smile. Her brown eyes sparkle and she bites her bottom lip in an all-too familiar way.

He waits until Shepherd leaves before he asks, "Mrs. Smith, do you have any questions for me?" He closes her chart and places it down at the edge of the bed and slips his hands into his pockets.

"Nope, I think I'm all set." She smiles before continuing, "But can you change the name in my chart, please?" She scratches the back of her neck irritably.

He raises an eyebrow as he picks up the folder, "Is there a problem?" He opens the page and glances down at her name, Libby Smith. It seems to suit her and he's not sure what she's asking of him.

"No, it's nothing major. It's just that I'm getting a divorce, and I don't plan on keeping my husband's last name."

He nods and clicks his pen as he bars out Smith and smiles at her, "What's your maiden name?"

"Kepner." She replies, failing to notice the blank look on his face.

**Shit.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry for the late update, I had my brother's incredibly long and tiresome novel to read (not that it's not brilliant...), and a few last minute things to sort out before school, and since I'm starting again tomorrow, I really needed to get this up before anything else got in the way. But, better late then never, right? So... Enjoy!**

* * *

"Doctor Shepherd!" He calls his attending out later in the day, catching up with the older man at the nurse's station.

Derek Shepherd raises his eyebrows but doesn't glance up at the young intern, "What can I help you with, Doctor Avery?"

Jackson taps his hand down on the desk a few times, "It's about the patient."

He nods while writing something out, "Libby Smith?"

"Yeah." He breathes out, "See, uh- I don't think-"

Shepherd closes his chart and eyes the younger doctor, "I have other patients to see, so if you can't say anything within the next ten seconds, I'm walking away."

He thinks that maybe Shepherd's in an edgy mood because he ended things with his wife. Or rather, she ended things. She ended things because the panties were Meredith's, and Shepherd had somehow returned them back to his trailer. The trailer that he shared with his wife.

He makes a note to himself to never make that same mistake.

Jackson blinks a couple of times and scratches the back of his neck anxiously, "Does the patient have any family members?"

"She's divorced, Avery and she came here by herself. She hasn't made a phone call, and she hasn't asked to."

"I think she might have a sister."

Derek frowns, "Did she tell you that?"

"No, she didn't have to."

"Great, so you have a sixth sense, congratulations. I'll be sure to let my psychic know." He goes to grab his chart and walk away until Jackson groans and speaks.

"She's an intern here." He continues when Shepherd looks at him confusedly with anticipation to finish, "Her last name, well, her maiden name, is Kepner. There's uh- There's an intern here, a friend of mine actually, uh- April Kepner. I know she has a few sisters, and one of them is called Libby."

Derek nods a short instant before stepping closer and holding up a finger with a serious expression. "She doesn't know about this?" Jackson shakes his head so he goes on, "Good, and it's going to stay that way until my patient, our patient, decides whether she wants to let her sister know or not. If she is, in fact, her sister."

"She's my friend! I'm just supposed to not tell her about this?"

"That's right."

Jackson frowns, "She could die. In surgery, she could die. And if April finds out that I knew about this-"

"She's not going to find out because you're not going to tell her anything. If she wanted her to know, she would have called her to tell her, but she hasn't. And, unless she changes her mind and does, then you don't mention anything to Doctor Kepner. Are we understood?"

What the hell?

Granted, he doesn't know April that well, and he knows very, very little about her family, but he's still her friend before anything else, and he's not sure he can lie to her about this.

He thinks of what it'd be like if it were him. What if he had a brother that was dying and waiting for surgery, somewhere in the hospital and April knew about it? And she never mentioned it? And she never told him? And he never knew?

He's not sure if he could forgive her.

And he doesn't want her to never forgive him for this.

But when it comes down to it, when he forgets that he's her friend, or whatever else he potentially is, he remembers that he's a doctor. A doctor with an oath. An oath to save his patients and keep their information confidential.

"Okay." He has to bite his lip from saying anything more, to stop himself from starting an argument with his attending right in the middle of the hallway.

* * *

Thankfully, he doesn't see her much throughout the rest of the day.

He skips lunch to avoid confronting her. He's not sure if it's because of her sister's secret, or their talk the day before.

If she can't be near him or, at the very last, stand by his side as a friend, then how in the hell is he supposed to tell her anything, he thinks, how is he supposed to stand by her side when she's going to need him?

But the he reminds himself that he can't tell her anything, so there won't be any standing and comforting going on.

"Hey!"

He closes his eyes for a brief second, muttering an "Oh, crap," under his breath as he turns around to face the brunette.

Cristina raises an eyebrow at his ticked off expression, "What's up with you? Did Crazy Kepner dump you?"

"No, she- Crazy Kepner?" It's his turn to look at her confused.

She shrugs, "Whatever, I'm looking for Shepherd. You're on his service, right?" She asks and he simply nods, crossing his arms over his chest as he eyes her mischievously.

"Oh, no." He shakes his head when a hint of a smirk appears of her face, "No, no. This is my surgery." He tells her proudly.

She rolls her eyes, "Oh, come on, you're not even gonna get to touch the patient!"

He weighs his options for a second, thinking that it might actually be a better and simpler solution for Yang to take the case from him. Maybe if he wasn't on her sister's case, then he wouldn't feel so nervous about talking to April.

He's only jittery and anxious for a certain reason; it being that if she says even the slightest thing, he'll blab his mouth and read every little detail off of her sister's chart.

Jackson sighs, making up his mind as he licks his lips, "You're not having this one, Yang." He nods once, sure of his word, before turning on his heel to leave, and stopping dead in his tracks as she calls out behind him.

"What if I tell your little girlfriend about your stupid bet with Evil Spawn, huh?"

**Shit.**

He's somehow managed to forget about that whole thing, about the length and terms of the wager.

Who had to fall in love with you, again?

How much was it worth?

Or better yet, how the hell did Yang know about it?

He glances back at her, noticing the arrogant grin on her lips, "What are you talking about?"

Cristina laughs, "What's the deal, again?" She frowns and taps a finger on her chin, "Don't you have to be her friend and, like, not screw her? Which is quite funny, because I seem to recall you two in-"

He cuts her off quickly, placing his hand over her mouth and ignoring her faint chuckle.

"You are evil." He informs her and she squints her eyes as she presses a finger against his chest.

"No more than you are for playing some twisted game on that innocent, do-eyed, crazy little virgin."

"Don't you have someone else to harass?" Jackson groans and rubs the back of his neck, trying to get her to leave him alone with his thoughts.

She shakes her head, "Oh, no, this is so much more fun!" She laughs, "I want the surgery."

"You like cardio!"

"So? I'm weighing my options." Cristina shrugs, folding her arms across her chest. "I want the surgery."

Jackson raises a brow, "You just wanna get close to Shepherd so you can get info for Meredith." He tries and she grimaces.

"What Mer chooses to do with McDreamy is her choice, I couldn't give a crap. As long as I don't have to wear a freaking bridesmaids dress and babysit their kids, then I'm fine. I want the surgery." She repeats, holding her own.

"Well," He starts, thinking of another possible argument to dissuade her, "It's Neuro and, well, I like-"

"Oh, please. You're gonna go into Plastics or Gyno or something crap like that. I want the surgery."

He finally caves in to himself, "You can't have it!"

"What, you got a crush on the dying girl?" She smirks.

"No, it's April's sister." He speaks suddenly, wincing as she gasps for a second before grabbing his shoulder.

She falters for a second, glancing over his back, "She, uh-"

"What about my sister?"

Jackson's eyes flick open, and he finds himself turning behind himself to face her.

"April."

**Shit.**


End file.
